“It was the team and Nelson, but Alonso was part of the problem,” the Brazilian said in an interview at the time.

“He knew. We cannot know it, [but] of course he knew. Absolute certainty.”

However, by this point Ferrari had already signed Alonso to drive for it in 2010 with Massa, leading to consequences for the Brazilian sounding off.

“In October 2009 I also told journalists that I believed Fernando Alonso (the other Renault driver who won because of Nelsinho’s crash) knew it was on purpose,” Massa says now in his witness statement.

“When Ferrari found out, GSA [one of Ferrari’s various companies] wrote me a letter on 16 October 2009 reprimanding me about making public comments about Fernando Alonso.

“I found out before my accident in July 2009 that Alonso would drive for Ferrari in the 2010 F1 season [FM1-003].

“The letter was signed by [one of Ferrari’s lawyers] Henry Peter. Ferrari then drafted a statement for me to issue but I refused to make that statement.

“Instead, I just said that it was time to look to the future.”

The pair did ultimately form a successful partnership for Ferrari, Alonso going close to winning the drivers’ title twice himself in 2010 and 2012.

After an investigation by the World Motor Sport Council, the then-Renault team boss Flavio Briatore received a lifetime ban from F1, while the team’s technical director Pat Symonds was given five years.

Despite Alonso being the main beneficiary of the plan in the race by emerging as victor, his reputation has come through unscathed, never being implicated in the investigation.

The hearing continues.